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RNA Biochemistry Lab
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An RNA biochemistry lab that explores when and where mRNA translation takes place.
AboutAbout the lab
Understanding the spatiotemporal control of RNA to approach the basic principles of gene expression
The RNA Biochemistry Lab studies a wide range of phenomena involving RNA.
In particular, it focuses on translation, the synthesis of proteins from the information in mRNA, and aims to comprehensively understand when, where, and how it takes place.
Making full use of genome-wide analysis with next-generation sequencers, everyone in the lab aims to become a researcher who can do both biochemical and molecular biological experiments and computational analysis.
The lab was newly established in September 2025 and began full-scale research activities at the University of Tsukuba in April 2026.
Key terms
- Translation
- The reaction that synthesizes proteins based on the genetic information in mRNA.
- Ribosome profiling
- A method that sequences the mRNA fragments protected by ribosomes to comprehensively measure which mRNAs are being translated.
- Membraneless organelles
- Structures inside cells that have no lipid membrane, such as RNP granules formed by the aggregation of RNA and proteins.
NewsLab news
Results of collaborative research published in Life Sci Alliance, Open Biol, Cell Stem Cell, Science, and Mol Metab
Humanics Degree Program added to the degree programs students can enter
Paper by Project Assistant Professor Hirakata and colleagues published in Molecular Cell
Paper by Professor Shichino and colleagues published in Polymer Journal
Paper by Professor Shichino and colleagues published in Nature Structural & Molecular Biology
ResearchResearch themes
The lab aims to comprehensively understand the temporal and spatial control of translation, the synthesis of proteins from mRNA, that is, when and where it occurs inside the cell. Its main approach is ribosome profiling, which it combines with biochemical and molecular biological methods and fluorescence microscopy to approach the mysteries of biological phenomena controlled by RNA.
*Illustrative imageRibosome profiling
mRNA fragments that remain undegraded because ribosomes are bound to them are analyzed with next-generation sequencers to comprehensively measure which mRNAs were translated and how much. This method is the main approach of the lab.
*Illustrative imageComprehensive analysis of local translation
The lab studies the mechanisms by which mRNAs are translated locally at specific sites in the cell. It developed APEX-Ribo-Seq, a broadly applicable analysis method, and created a large-scale dataset of local translation in 14 organelles. Going forward, it will focus on how local translation is regulated and what happens when it goes wrong.
*Illustrative imageTranslational control via membraneless organelles
RNP granules, which form when RNA and proteins aggregate and have no lipid membrane, are thought to store mRNAs until the time of translation. Using granule transcriptome analysis, which combines biochemical purification and labeling of granules with RNA-Seq, the lab investigates the relationship between the entry and exit of mRNAs and translation.
*Illustrative imageDiverse collaborative research
Through many collaborative projects using Ribo-Seq, the lab has uncovered mechanisms of translational control in the stress response, RNA modification, immunity, neuroscience and learning, development and differentiation, aging, and intraspecies diversity. The organisms it works with are also wide-ranging, including cultured cells, iPS cells, yeast, mice, zebrafish, plants, and amoebae.
MembersFaculty
- ProfessorYuichi Shichino
- Project Assistant ProfessorShigeki Hirakata
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Report an errorAbout the images
The top and research theme images are illustrative and were not taken at the lab. They are cropped from Wikimedia Commons images. Cropped CC BY-SA images are provided under the same CC BY-SA license as the original (version shown on each line).
- Top image: “Two percent Agarose Gel in Borate Buffer cast in a Gel Tray (Front, angled)” Joseph Elsbernd / CC BY 2.0 (cropped)
- Ribosome profiling: “Ribosome Translation” CNX OpenStax / CC BY 4.0 (cropped)
- Comprehensive analysis of local translation: “Next Gen Sequencer (NIH BioArt 386)” Courtesy of NIAID Ryan Kissinger / Public domain (cropped)
- Translational control via membraneless organelles: “Centrifuge in Laboratory 1” Ivangiesen / CC0 (cropped)
- Diverse collaborative research: “Zebrafish in aquarium lab” CSAR ACE / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (Psychiatry Lab): “FEMA - 30406 - Baptist disaster relief workers cooking in Kansas” Greg Henshall / Public domain (cropped)
- Related lab (Renal and Urologic Surgery Lab): “Cystoscopy system” Sarang / Public domain (cropped)
- Related lab (Cancer Immunotherapy Research Lab): “Laminaar TYKI DL20221105” Darja.Lavogina / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (Clinical Trials and Clinical Epidemiology Lab): “FP111 A4 medical record file (UK)” Whispyhistory / CC0 (cropped)
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